Innovations in Concrete

The concrete industry is continually adapting to meet the needs of a changing world. They are constantly working to evolve the production and use of cement and concrete to make a greater contribution towards sustainable development.

Portland Limestone

This type of concrete was first used in 2011 and also called Contempra, Portland-limestone cement lowers carbon emissions by ten percent, while making concrete with a similar amount of strength and longevity to concrete made with normal Portland cement. This is achieved by mixing the usual ingredient clinker with up to 15% of lime, which is 10% more than in ordinary Portland cement.

Image credit

Ultra High Performance Concrete

UHPC provides the structure with a very light, strong, durable and more efficient concrete. An example of one of the main uses for UHPC is critical infrastructure, where longevity in increasingly dangerous environments is desired. Because of the pliable material properties, the need to strengthen can be avoided altogether or significantly reduced. It is also very moldable and copies the form of materials with precision, allowing for slim, complicated shapes, indentations and adjusted textures not possible with normal reinforced concrete. UHPC provides a higher level of durability and longevity benefits for buildings. For all current regular concrete needs, find Concrete Cheltenham at a site like https://www.monstermixconcrete.co.uk/

Photocatalytic Concrete

Photocatalyst concrete is able to concrete clean and depollute the air we breathe. When applied on or inside a concrete structure, the photocatalyst contains a decomposing organic matter like dirt, including: organisms, fungi, bacteria; air pollutants and nitric oxide and sulfur oxides. It is also self-cleaning (based on titanium dioxide particles). Whilst still in the experimental stage in North America, this new cement can reduce urban smog by containing ingredients that act as catalysts for the air binding nitrogen and sulfur oxides into soluble salts.

Precast concrete pavements

Precast concrete pavements offer a long service life solution for rapid construction and repair of existing pavements with a short construction window. Precast panels are made and cured in a controlled environment so that at the location the curing time is not required. A successful trial pavement precast concrete to repair fasttrack on Ontario Highway 427, one of the busiest highways in the Greater Toronto Area which to minimized the duration of lane closures and traffic delays and reduced the work zone hazards.

Image credit

Permeable interlocking concrete

A cutting edge innovation is the development of mutually permeable concrete pavement and pervious concrete pavement which allows water to pass through the pavement and soak into the native soil, filtering and decomposing many contaminants that would otherwise enter the natural watershed. By collecting and storing rainwater under the parking lot and sidewalks, the translucent system reduces the need for retention ponds.